Falling into the Moments
by TaichiKoi
Summary: The killer. The beach house. The play. They all led to them forming a bond that was not like any other. S3 Zutara. Full summary in the first chapter.


_Falling into the Moments_

Rated: PG

Disclaimer: No profit of any kind is being made from this piece of fanfiction.

Summary: Before Katara and Zuko met up with the gang from their "field trip," they stopped at an abandoned beachfront late into the night to rest. Spoilers from The Southern Raiders episode. This will be part one of a trilogy.

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_The Night Was Over Much Too Soon_

Appa groaned, indicating he wanted to land soon. All the short trips he had taken in a week's time were really doing a number on the poor creature. While Appa usually basked in flying and feeling the air breeze through his fur, tonight he sagged and huffed wearily; he needed rest.

Zuko tugged on the reins slightly and guided him down to a beachfront that was deserted.

As soon as Appa's pairs of feet landed on the soft sand, he slouched into a comfortable position for sleeping.

Zuko stood, glancing back a bit to look at Katara. She had not spoken a word since confronting her mother's killer; nor had she moved from the center on the bison's saddle, her knees pulled up to her chin, arms locked around her calves.

"I'll set up camp for the night," Zuko said, jumping down with two sleep rolls under each arm.

Katara stayed where she was, closing her eyes. Moments passed with only sounds of Zuko's feet moving about in the sand as he prepared for camp. Normally, Katara would help, but she did not have the strength or care to do such trivial tasks at the moment.

Once Zuko finished rolling out the sleeping bags, he sat lotus style on his roll wondering what to do or say to the waterbender who remained atop the bison.

He glanced out at the vast ocean, watching the way the waves swelled and crashed tenderly at the shore. There was a certain allure to it, the fluid movements, the glow, its very essence calling one to jump right in and enjoy the refreshing liquid.

He watched the stars above glimmer in its reflection, how the full moon gave it an enriching blue color, a blue that no one had yet been able to capture in art, but only in memory.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?"

Zuko looked across the small makeshift camp, surprised to find Katara sitting on her bed roll and even more surprised that she'd spoken.

Just how long had he been staring at the water, so transfixed on it that his keen hearing did not pick up on her leaving their six-legged companion and making root on the sleeping pallet?

"Yeah, it is."

"And to think…" Katara began, picking at her pallet absentmindedly, "I was going to use it to do something so evil."

"That's not true," Zuko stated softly.

Katara pulled at a loose thread. "Yes, it is," she replied firmly.

Zuko watched the waves as he contemplated his response.

"Revenge is an emotion that is natural to us, humans I mean, and our elements are essentially extensions of it. What you felt back there was natural and understandable, and I'm sure many before us went through the very same thing. It's neither evil nor good, it simply is."

Katara glanced at Zuko from across the camp fire.

"So it's okay that, as benders, we can just whip out our element whenever we're pissed or upset and can simply let it be? How is that not a bad thing?"

"Like I said, it's natural, normal even. People get upset, angry, whatever, and as benders, it sometimes comes out in our bending."

Katara let out a scoff.

"Look, all I'm saying is that it is what it is, and really, despite it all, you had firm control over your emotions."

"How do you figure?"

Zuko peered over at her through the flames.

"You could have easily pierced him with those ice spikes, but you stopped. What stopped you in that moment?"

"I thought of my mom, and how very disappointed she would have been if I ended his life. It would have tainted the very memory I have of her, and I didn't want that," Katara stated, closing her eyes in hopes to keep the fresh tears at bay.

There was a pause.

Zuko clasped his hands in his lap. "I do that too. I think of my mom whenever I feel like my back is against the wall, or if I feel like my bending is out of control; she keeps me in check, even now. I also think of my uncle, what he would say or do in different circumstances."

Katara glanced out at the ocean, a few tears sliding down her cheeks as she asked, "What do you think he would say right now?"

Zuko stood up and walked the short distance to Katara's side of the camp fire, taking a seat next to her. He gently wiped the tears off her cheeks.

"He would probably say that, even though you're a water bender, tears really do not suit you."

Katara felt something unravel inside of her as she let her head drop down to his chest, choking back sobs.

Zuko, taken aback, did not know what to do for the first time that night.

Katara cried into his chest, her hands taking hold of his tunic, forming fists.

"I was so scared…I'm still scared..."

"Of what," Zuko asked softly, loosely wrapping his arms around her, albeit awkwardly.

Katara sniffed. "Of what I'm becoming… This war, it's changing me and I don't know if I like it."

Zuko looked up at the dark azure sky, wondering again what his uncle would say.

"War changes a person, that is unavoidable fact, but it doesn't mean you'll come out of it bad. If anything, it's making you stronger and a better person."

Katara detached her face from Zuko's chest, wiping leftover tears off her cheeks.

She looked up at him, letting a silence fall between them for a moment.

"I guess the same could be said about you…"

Surprise filled Zuko's eyes as he looked at her. "You really think so?"

Katara shrugged. "Well, how you fought with Azula back at the air temple was definitely better than when I last saw you fight. And you're a better person now since you've joined us. At least, you better be because if this is some elaborate trick-"

"Trust me, it's not. I really am trying to right my wrongs," Zuko replied immediately. "I really do regret my actions back in Ba Sing Se."

Katara looked off to the side, tugging on one of her hair loopies. "About Ba Sing Se...I'm sorry."

Zuko frowned, confused. "Why would you be sorry? You didn't do anything wrong, I did."

Katara shook her head. "The only reason you were in the catacombs was because I sold you out to Azula, though at the time I didn't realize it was her until it was too late, but still. So if I didn't tell on you, you would have never been down there, and you wouldn't have sided with her."

Zuko stood up and started to pace, frustration rising. "Why would you do that? Why would pigeon-rat on me and Uncle? Did you really hate us that much?" The last question was whispered, as he turned to face her, his expression hurt.

Katara looked up at him. "I thought you were spies, just posing as workers to take down Ba Sing Se from the inside, but when Azula was surprised you were in the city, I knew I just made a huge mistake... I thought, wow, he really is changing and I screwed it up, but you aided her anyway... I didn't know what to think anymore, I just felt betrayed."

Zuko sighed, taking a seat next to her once more. "And I will keep trying to make it up to you. I will keep seeking your forgiveness."

"You still have a ways to go, Zuko-"

"Then tell me what else I have to do, please," Zuko pleaded, looking straight into her eyes, imploring.

Katara stared at him and realized with a shock that his face no longer represented all the wrongs in the Fire Nation. She no longer felt hatred for the boy next to her. She could finally let him be Zuko, _simply Zuko_. It was a terrifying, yet freeing feeling.

"Tell me something. How come you want my forgiveness so badly? Why does it matter if you have it or not?"

Zuko wondered briefly if that last was a trick question.

"It matters because you're right, you were the first person to even begin to trust me, to give me a chance," Zuko sighed, running a hand through his hair. "And I really messed it up. I could see it in your eyes how much my betrayal affected you. I knew that joining your group, you were going to be the hardest one to gain any forgiveness from."

Katara watched the flames cast over his person, parts of him in light, parts of him in shadow, but she could have sworn in that brief moment he gained more light over the dark.

She grasped his hands. "Then swear this to me. Swear to me that no matter what Azula or your father might dangle in front of you, no matter how tempting it might be to side with them, you won't. "

"I swear," Zuko promised without hesitation.

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A/N: This "missing scene" was to lay down the ground work for what is about to come up next. Stay tuned! Also, the title for this chapter comes from Ricky Martin's 'You Stay With Me,' which has such Zutara lyrics, seriously.


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